Department of Health and Social Care

Respiratory Syncytial Virus: Vaccination

Baroness Ritchie of Downpatrick: To ask His Majesty's Government what steps the JointCommittee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JVCI) will take to examine all Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) technologies before deciding to offer Nirsevimab to newborn babies.

Lord Markham: The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) subcommittee is expecting, over a series of meetings, to consider the range of products that are in later stages of development aimed at preventing RSV in young children and older adults, including those approaching licensure. Manufacturers will be invited to the subcommittee meetings to present their data. Beyfortus® (nirsevimab) has been prioritised for consideration as this product is now licensed. The subcommittee will provide its advice to the main JCVI committee which will be ultimately responsible in making any recommendations with respect to the use of these products in the national immunisation programme, once it is content it has reviewed the necessary evidence to do this. Advice will depend on the timelines for potential licensure and the Committee having the necessary information on the safety, efficacy, burden, impact and cost-effectiveness of the products to inform the considerations for their use in the UK immunisation programme. The JCVI will also consult with NHS England, the Department, United Kingdom Health Security Agency and the devolved administrations on potential timelines for implementation of any potential programmes which will also depend on supply and timelines for procurement.

Social Services: Vacancies

Lord Taylor of Warwick: To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the current levels of unmet need and staff vacancies in social care.

Lord Markham: According to Skills for Care’s monthly tracking data, the overall vacancy rate in independent adult social care providers was 11.2% in October 2022. It is difficult to assess the current levels of unmet need in Adult Social Care. We are taking action to address national data gaps with 54 local authorities contributing to our new Client-Level Data collection which for the first time collects data about the people who draw on care and support as well as unpaid carers. This will be mandatory for all local authorities from April.

Doctors: Migrant Workers

Lord Hodgson of Astley Abbotts: To ask His Majesty's Government how many doctors from overseas first registered in England in each of the last 10 years; and what percentage of those doctors came from EU or EEA countries.

Lord Markham: The Department does not hold data on the number of doctors from overseas who first registered in England in each of the last 10 years or what percentage of those doctors came from EU or EEA countries. The General Medical Council (GMC) is the independent regulator of all medical doctors practising in the UK, and all doctors must register with them and hold a licence to practise to work in the UK. The GMC maintains data on medical practitioners registered with them.

Medical Records: Adoption

Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle: To ask His Majesty's Government whether they have plans to reassess the guidance to GP practices on the erasure of medical records of adopted children,given (1) theincreasing understanding of the usefulness of current and future genetic screening technologies, and (2) the use of family information to inform screening and treatment.

Lord Markham: There are no plans at present to reassess the guidance. Primary Care Support England’s guidance states that current adoption legislation requires all adopted patients to be given a new National Health Service number, and all previous medical information relating to the patient to be put into a newly created medical record. If possible, electronic medical records should be merged on the relevant General Practice’s system with the new post-adoptive details. If this guidance is followed, then medical records for adopted children should not be erased. A copy of this guidance is attached.Medical records for adopted patients GP guidance (pdf, 304.1KB)

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Veterinary Services: Northern Ireland

Baroness Young of Old Scone: To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to ensure that those veterinary medicines at risk of being discontinued in Northern Ireland will continue to be available after the end of the 'grace period' for implementation of the Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland; and what discussions they are holding with the EU in relation to (1) short term, and (2) long term, solutions to the challenges of availability of veterinary medicines in Northern Ireland.

Lord Benyon: On 19 December 2022, the European Commission issued an announcement which provides for a three-year extension to the grace period for veterinary medicines until 31 December 2025. These arrangements will mean that the current processes for moving veterinary medicines between Great Britain and Northern Ireland will continue to be administered as they have been up to this point.We welcome this extension to the veterinary medicine grace period from the Commission and are looking forward to further discussions on veterinary medicines in the New Year. We will continue to work for a long-term, sustainable solution to the supply of veterinary medicines.

Agriculture: Civil Service Agencies

Lord Taylor of Warwick: To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensurethat agricultural expertise is represented in government agencies.

Lord Benyon: We recognise that knowledge of agricultural sectors and skills is important to support the sector effectively. We ensure this through the staff we recruit, the appointments we make and how we devise and deliver policy.Through our reforms to farming policy we have involved over 3,000 farmers in so-called 'tests and trials' and have over 800 farmers helping us pilot the Sustainable Farming Incentive routinely feeding in their insights and experiences. We continue to step up our partnership with the farming community through our co-design groups, which draw on industry knowledge to recommend improvements to Defra schemes. Over 1,000 people in farming volunteered to take part, including beef, sheep and cereal farmers.Public appointments are promoted to relevant sectors via our social media channels and through stakeholder engagement. Defra works closely with Arm's Length Bodies (ALBs) to recruit Board Members with relevant skills and expertise. This has included specifically recruiting from the agriculture sector for the Boards of the Environment Agency; Natural England; Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board; Forestry Commission; and the National Park Authorities.In accordance with the principles of the Partnerships between Departments and ALBs: Code of Good Practice, Defra has an agreed Framework Document with each of its key Executive Agencies setting out the broad framework in which they will operate. As part of such arrangements, the ALB is responsible for the recruitment, retention and motivation of its people ensuring they are encouraged to acquire the appropriate professional, management and other expertise to achieve their organisational objectives.The Rural Payments Agency recognises the importance of agricultural expertise in the delivery of its services. For instance, it has a number of activities to capture insight which include: regular engagement with farming bodies and associations; the creation in 2022 of a farmer panel with over 750 members; learning from feedback directly received from farmers in their day to day dealings with the agency; and direct engagement with farmers through a series of face to face events all of which are improving the service and the farmer experience of dealing with government.The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) has significant areas of expertise related to farming and agriculture: veterinary and animal health officers (livestock health and welfare), plant health, marketing of produce, egg marketing, international trade of plants, livestock and animal by-products, disease outbreak and control, scientific expertise of farm animal diseases. APHA has run recruitment campaigns for veterinary and scientific resource and plant health inspectors, has various apprenticeship schemes and specific learning and development for the various professions. APHA also collaborates with academia and has an Academic Board to support further scientific education and qualifications.The Veterinary Medicines Directorate has a range of experienced employees to ensure veterinary medicines for agricultural use are used safely and responsibly. This includes veterinary assessors and inspectors, as well as specific teams (such as the Antimicrobial Resistance and Residues Teams) who engage with stakeholders from across the agricultural sector to ensure compliance with the Veterinary Medicines Regulations and to inform policy decisions.